Madison Grey
by GreenNinja
Summary: Necrolai releases a mysterious creature from a bottle, and Madison is replaced with a girl called Madison Grey. She's like Madison Rocca in all respects...except that she's more selfconfident. What happened to Rocca? What does she want with them?
1. Mystical Motion Serenade

"A doppelganger is a ghostly double of a person," Clare said as she read out of the book of Dark Magic, "Throughout the ages, they have taken the forms of various people, often being foreboding of death. Some doppelgangers, though, are harmless. The creatures dwell in the Desert of Lost Souls until they are captured or summoned to ours. Once released to the surface, the doppelganger takes on the form of the first person it meets. Telling a doppelganger from the original person can be…"

"Yeah, we get it," Vida forcibly slammed the book shut on Clare's hand, the apprentice pulling it away and shaking it to dull the pain. "Now why don't you tell us about creatures that they're actually planning to use against us?" Madison grabbed Vida by the shoulders.

"Sis, calm down. We don't know what Imperious is planning. Necrolai used a Soul Specter on us once. She could just as easily pull out a doppelganger."

"What else is in that book?" Chip intently asked, "I want to know!"

"A complete bestiary," Clare explained, "this volume has creatures of Dark Magic, but Five-Branch and Knight Magic have their own books as well. Udonna's library is really worth reading if you have the time. I think I've been through every book at least once…"

"We need to go home, Clare," Nick interjected walking to the elevator that led to the dragon head, "it's getting late."

"I'm staying," Madison insisted, "with Udonna's increasing absences, and Daggeron's constant training, Clare may be the only one who can actually teach us anything new."

"Just don't be home too late," Vida winked as she left with the others, "now come on, Xander. You can make your moves on Clare later."

"When did I ever say I was going to…?" Xander asked.

"I saw it in your eyes, loverboy," Vida snapped.

"Good night, Maddie," Chip waved good-bye.

"Good night, Chip," she said, "Sleep well."

Clare pulled the Five-Branch volume off the shelf, opened to the table of contents, and told Madison to select the first creature. An intense night of studying and preparation was ahead of them. The best offense, even in magic, is a good defense.

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Imperious sat on his throne, looking into the ovular piece of steel in his fan. "I'm so beautiful," he commented, moving his bandaged hand down his face, "yes, a great ruler of the underworld am I. When The Master rises, I'll be at his right-hand side, and the world will be MINE!"

"Imperious!" Necrolai's voice sounded from the top of the Pit.

"WHAT!" the mummy yelled, dropping his fan and hastily picking it back up.

"I got something that will show those Magicians once and for all!" she landed in the middle of the Pit with another bottle in hand.

"Another Specter?" asked Imperious angrily, "The last one failed horribly."

"It isn't a Specter," Necrolai retorted, "It's something else entirely."

Necrolai produced the bottle from thin air; it appeared in a flurry of purple wisps. It had a rounded shape at the bottom and a topper like a wolf's-head. The entire vessel was a deep purple, and something, cold and shaky, could be felt moving about inside. "Who better to beat the Rangers than the Red Ranger himself? He has such boundless power…he could defeat them in one spectacular burst of flame!"

"I see a burst of flame every time one of my creatures is defeated," Imperious sighed, "but for the Rangers, I might turn my head their direction. Who knows? It may even be colorful. Necrolai, I give you full permission to unleash your plan whenever you wish."

Koragg had overheard the whole conversation from the nearby archway, and he had all intention of hearing what was going on between the ruler and his servant. "This will either help the Magicians in becoming stronger…or it will kill them all from the inside," Koragg sheathed his sword in his shield, "but if it's the latter, then I'll have no choice but to interfere in that backstabber Imperious' plans once again." He walked off into the shadows, whistling a morbid tune.

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Madison had been assigned the afternoon shift on this Friday, so Vida was taking her usual place in the morning hours. It was just she, Xander and Nick at the counter that morning. Toby was listening to Jake Bonebreaker and the Metalheads in the backroom. The volume was turned all the way up, and customers were off at their own jobs, so they basically had the entire store to themselves.

Xander was zapping his wand at a poster of a scantily-clad female singer from the 80's, making her gyrate about in her paper confines. "I'd go on tour with you anytime…" Xander said, staring up blankly at the poster.

"Are you sure you're supposed to be using magic for that?" Nick asked.

"Oh, I'm sure," Xander said, winking at the woman within.

The woman winked back.

Vida continued organizing her shelf of records, and Nick held lonely countertop duty. Eventually, Vida just gave up and reclined in her chair behind the DJ booth. She took out her iPod's headphones and moved the buds close to her ears, only to be interrupted by the ringing of her Mystic Morpher. The gold phone, aside from the glaring "M" on its cover, was a nearly-inconspicuous way to hide her true, magical idenitity. Xander's and Nick's were ringing as well.

"Yes?" Nick asked.

"This is Chip!" Chip said tiredly, the clanging of metal could be heard in the background, "We've got a Dark Magic creature in the middle of town! Clare told us about this one last night. It's a…Manticore, I think."

"We'll be right there!" Xander said, "Let's go!"

"Ready?" Nick asked.

"Ready?" Vida snapped, "Toby's…"

"Not caring what's going on," Nick replied, "He loves that metal. Now, READY!"

"READY!" Xander and Vida yelled.

"Magical Source, Mystic Force!"

Three beams of light shot from the tips of their phone wands, hitting the vintage disco ball on the ceiling, bouncing around the Rockporium, spreading out into three Ranger-colored Mystic Seals, and finally, in auras of flame, rock and wind, forming the spandex suits that the townspeople of Briarwood knew only as the "Mystic Force".

They ran out the door, not even caring to close up shop. Toby walked out from the backroom, checking to see if everything was cleaned up. The store was indeed in shape, completely spotless and devoid of anything…up to and including his employees. He muttered something about the disco ball's lights needing to be toned down and looked to the poster on the wall.

He could swear it mouthed "Toby". Tobias J. Slambrook had no other choice but to retire to his office and drown his confusion in the chords of classic heavy metal. Just like every other day.

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Chip had the rhythm going in him. He ducked, dodged, punched and shot bolts of lightning at the boar-like, tribal-mask-adorned beast. He didn't know why it was attacking the middle of an empty rock quarry, but monsters seemed to love those places. "Magi Staff, Crossbow!" He took aim and launched a lightning bolt into the Manticore's mouth. It choked on the lightning before spitting it back at Chip and glaring its eyes in his direction.

Suddenly, Chip felt the rhythm in him in an entirely different way. He couldn't stop moving his feet. And worse than that, he was dancing a Caribbean tribal dance that made him look like a theme park performer. Nick, Xander and Vida flew in overhead on their Mystic Racers, leaping to attack the Manticore. Xander flew in for an overhead slash with his Axe, but found the weapon ineffective.

Vida created a pair of fairy wings behind her back, but forced them away when she discovered them getting in the way of her dancing. Even Nick, who had attempted to call for his Mystic Speeder and crash Manticore's party, found his hands unable to touch the right buttons. They joined Chip in the dance craze that was forcibly sweeping the city.

"YES!" growled Manticore in a boar-like grunt, "Dance! Dance to your doom! When your energy is worn out, I shall devour your life force for my own personal ends!"

"You call this punishment?" Vida laughed, "This rocks!"

The dancing forced them into demorphing.

"Vida, now's not the time," Chip said, "We're in mortal danger."

"It's just life force," Xander said, "We can always get it back."

"So that explains why I found Aunt Niella in the backroom of Roo…" Nick cut his sentence off when the others started giving him odd looks.

"Punish me!" Vida yelled jovially, "Punish me all you want! I can take it, piggy!"

In a distant alleyway, the alien from another star system, coincidentally known as Piggy, could feel his ears burning. "I think I could like these human women," he thought to himself, "they're strong of will and heart. I may have to meet one of them sometime." As such, he returned to digging through garbage.

"Guys, I'm on my way!" Madison's voice sounded through the Morpher around their belts. They continued dancing, Vida waving her arms around in the air, completely enveloped in the experience. Chip continued eyeing her.

"Vida, are you just going to take this?"

"He may be a monster, but he's got his groove going on!" Vida cheered, "I like this guy!"

"VIDA, HE WANTS TO KILL US!" Nick shouted, "Is that getting through to you?"

Vida moved her head as though she was listening to her music. There was no hope for her.

A blue Mystic Seal appeared in the water, and Madison, already transformed, leapt from it. She fired a torrent of water at Manticore, but his mask took no damage. What Madison didn't know was that Necrolai was watching the team's every move, and her time had come. She was going to put her plan into action.

"This is it…" Necrolai plucked the wolf topper off the bottle, took a deep whiff of the contents within and sighed. "It smells like pure evil. I love that." The bottle tipped over and crashed, releasing a grayish mist that flew across the air. At that moment, Nick moved into its path, but Fate wasn't going to be so kind to the Vampire Queen. She crossed her arms over her chest and watched to see what would happen.

"Maddie!" Vida cheered, "Join in!"

"He's not going to affect me!" Madison said, "I've got a stronger will than that."

"But you can't resist everything…" Necrolai laughed to herself, "Like your precious Nick."

The grayish mist streamlined itself and darted through the air, heading right for Nick. Madison, at that moment, leapt where Nick was standing to dodge one of Manticore's eye blasts. She felt something hit her in the chest and knelt down to the ground. A blue fog surrounded her body and immediately faded. There was a flash of a Mystic Seal. No one was sure what had happened. She seemed to be unaffected.

"Thanks, Maddie," Nick said, "I owe you."

Madison said not a word and stood up, launching a powerful blast down the middle of Manticore's mask. The mask reformed, but the dancing stopped. Nick, Xander and Chip gained their footing, but Vida was still dancing. Madison grabbed her by the shoulders and told her to transform. Vida did so. The familiar spell code signal beeped on Maddie and Vida's Morphers.

"The Xenotome has recognized your courage to get up at the crack of dawn and fight," Clare said, "it's granted you a new spell."

"Then let's use it," Vida said.

The girls watched the spell syllables flash and typed in the new code, yelling it with powerful pride.

"GALWIT MYSTO TONE!"

A pair of red pom-poms, as bright as the Mystic Force Fighters, appeared in Madison and Vida's hands.

"They're so…girly," Vida commented, "but if I can dance, then let's go!"

"We're going to fight dance with dance," Madison said proudly.

"Mystical Motion Serenade!" the girls pronounced together.

Vida and Madison danced while they sung one of Vida's favorite songs. Xander, Nick and Chip, while no longer under a spell, were caught up in the beat. They tapped their feet and snapped their fingers as the girls went through their fanciful motions.

_I got lost  
In the sounds  
I hear in my mind  
All these voices  
I hear in my mind all these words  
I hear in my mind  
All this music_

Madison and Vida zoomed out of sight, only to reappear at blazingly-fast speeds and strike Manticore in the heart. They finished off the song as they struck a victorious pose with the pom-poms held high in the air.

_And it breaks my heart   
And it breaks my heart  
And it breaks my heart  
It breaks my heart_

Manticore exploded in a fiery blaze, just like all the creatures from the underworld did. Vida was saddened that the dancing had come to a close, but happy that she and Madison had won another victory for the team.

"Rocca sisters rule!" she proclaimed, raising her hand in the air and powering down.

"Sister?" Madison asked, "You're not my sister."

"…huh?" Vida arched her eyebrow in great confusion.

Madison snapped her fingers and powered down. In all respects, she looked exactly like the Madison they knew. The only differences were her plaid jacket and blue jean shorts, blue tennis shoes, and hair cut down to her ears. She gave Vida a questioning look.

"You've known me since elementary school, Vida…and you still can't remember that my name is Madison GREY."

Silence fell over the rocky beach.


	2. The Other Madison

The new Madison in town, Madison Grey as she had ostensibly made herself known, was already getting along with Vida very well. Vida was still adjusting to having her not-sister around, but the forceful personality, short hair…she could truly believe that Madison Grey was related to her…even if she wasn't. The group of five walked back to the Rockporium. Chip and Madison changed into their purple jackets just as Toby's song finished up. He walked out of the backroom and greeted his employees. 

"There you are!" he exclaimed, "I thought you disappeared…and the poster…and the lights…"

"Damnit," Xander whispered under his breath. He inconspicuously took out his Morpher and ceased the motion of the woman on the poster.

"Maddie!" Toby grabbed Madison by her shoulders, "You cut your hair."

"I like it this way," Madison Grey said, brushing it back with her hand, "So, Toby, where do I start? Xander's probably going to 'supervise' as usual."  
"Yes, of course," Toby said panickedly, "You've got everything under control, right?"

"Of course I do, boss!" Xander said proudly.

"WE do," Madison Grey interjected, "now, I believe this is my shift. Vida, Nick, you're free to go do whatever you please. Your earlier work set things up nicely."

"Thank you…Maddie!" Vida cheered, trying to remember this girl in blue wasn't of any relation.

Nick and Vida left the store as Madison, Xander, and Chip started on the afternoon's work. Toby was pleased that Madison had stepped up and set things straight. He looked at the poster one more time. It wasn't moving. Finally, some peace and quiet that he could comprehend.

"Oh, and Maddie?" he asked.

"Yes?" Madison Grey spoke.

"Be sure to turn off the lights on the disco ball. We must have left them on from last night's dance party."

Maddie pointed her finger at the disco ball's switch on the wall and stopped its incessant spinning. "I'm so getting a raise for this," she thought.

* * *

"Necrolai, you incompetent fool!" Midhat screamed, "Your plan failed…again!"

"Not entirely," Necrolai pleaded, "I can already tell that Madison Grey is a much more stormy personality than Madison Rocca ever was. Just think of it – her teammates offset by her attitude, her ex-sister confused…oh, it's almost perfection in its glory."

"So we're keeping her?"

"Yes."

"And what happened to Rocca, anyway?"

"Oh, yes…I think she's handling herself just fine.

* * *

The Desert of Lost Souls was a pretty barren place. Nothing but sand and the weapons of those who had been killed in battle were lined along it. When the mist had struck Madison Rocca, she saw a flash of blue light, and the next thing she knew, she was falling. Falling endlessly through the magical void, only seen when the Solar Streak Megazord was in operation. She felt her body hit sand. Then, there was nothing but darkness.

Madison awoke to find herself dressed in nothing but her white T-shirt, usually worn under her magical vest, and a short skirt. It was an incredibly simple outfit, with a belt made of rope. Her Morpher was still in her hand. She looked around the desert and started to wander around. The heat from the sun above and the cold from the wind tore at her body, but she trudged on, her magic healing her from the debris that flew past her face.

After she had been walking for what felt like half an hour, she felt something splash her in the face. It was water, pure water. Madison could feel her wounds heal. With the last of her strength, she reached into her pocket and pulled out her Mystic Morpher. "Lead me to the water!" The tip of the wand-phone began to light up aglow in shades of blue, and Madison followed.

She ran across the desert, her feet sweeping against the sand, and, when she wasn't looking, felt herself stumble into something cold and wet. She glanced down, and could see that she'd come across the Soul Oasis. This wasn't even documented in the books of magic, so she wasn't exactly sure what it could do. Madison looked into the water, and could suddenly see a girl who looked very much like herself materialize.

"Oh my god…" she gasped, "It's me."

* * *

Hours later, with Madison Grey keeping everyone in line, the Rockporium was about to close. "Maddie, you coming home with me?" Vida asked, "Well…new Maddie."

"I guess I am," Madison Grey answered, "I can't remember a home of my own."

"How is that possible?" Nick asked as he hung up his jacket.

"I don't know, Nate," Madison Grey said, "Everything before I came to Briarwood is a blur."

"Well, c'mon, not-sis!" Vida said, "We're going home!"

Vida and Madison rode in Vida's car back to the Rocca house, and everyone else returned to their respective homes. Madison and Vida walked in the door; Madison Grey was a little apprehensive. To her, this was entering a stranger's house, and she didn't want to hurt everyone around her. Deep in the recesses of her mind, though, life was going as normal.

"Hi, Dad!" Vida exclaimed, "We're home!"

Mr. Rocca, a man close to middle age with dark brown hair and a stern look, walked in. He saw that Madison had suddenly cut her hair short and went out to purchase a new wardrobe.

"Maddie!" he said, "about time you changed yourself up a little bit." He hugged Madison Grey, only to find her shoving him away.

"She's had a tough day," Vida answered, "We're going to get ready for the night. Settle down, mix some records, cut some film, that kind of stuff."  
"Enjoy yourselves," Mr. Rocca replied, "Dinner's at 8!"

"Yes, Dad!" Vida shouted.

"Alright," Madison Grey smirked, "We've got time."

Vida went into her room, which had pictures of the latest musicians and a high-end DJ table, and collapsed onto her bed. She could feel the sweat roll down her forehead, and immediately thought "Wow, that dancing must've really gotten to me today." She tossed her shirt aside into a dirty clothes pile and walked into the bathroom. She slipped out of the rest of her outfit, hung a T-shirt on the door, and turned on the faucet. The water began to rush over her body, cleansing her from another hard day of work.

Madison Grey walked into the room once owned by the other Rocca sister. It was a simple, mostly undecorated room in light shades of blue. Everything was tidily organized, and a small collection of video editing equipment was grouped around a computer at the edge of the room. Grey looked around at the place, and decided to see what Rocca's hobbies had been. If she was going to be in her place for the time being, she'd need to know the kind of person her predecessor was. She turned on the computer, and heard a beep, followed by a faint whirring noise.

The computer's video editing program started immediately. Grey saw what her precursor had been filming, and the result surprised her. She pressed "Play" and watched the contents with an unwavering gaze.

_The screen showed the exterior of the Rocca house. Vida was sitting at a table out back sometime in the summer, wearing a pink bikini. A blue streak of color ran through her hair. "Maddie, come on," Vida urged to the camera, "stop being such a worrywart. Xander and Chip are waiting for you. You know that the Thorns close their pool at 7 o'clock. Something about mosquitoes."_

_"But Vi…" Madison answered on the tape, turning it towards her, "I can't let them see me like this. I'm…not as pretty as you are." She panned down her body, covered up. Her own swimsuit was barely visible underneath. Vida had joked about it making Madison look "older than she was." She hadn't thought very well of that, but she didn't want to reveal so much of herself, body or mind, in front of the boys. Xander would just make come-ons and Chip would stand there all slack-jawed._

_"I know what this is, Maddie," Vida ran up to Maddie, her face taking up the camera, "it's because you're the little sister!" She pulled Madison's cover-up down to her waist, revealing the body of a young girl. Madison's camera toppled off her shoulder to land safely in the grass, pointing up at Vida's body. Madison ran over to it, picked it up, cleaned it, and shut it off._

_"VIDA!" she said, "I'm not going!"_

_"Maddie!" Vida pleaded, "I didn't mean it that way!"_

_It was too late to apologize._

Madison Grey stared at the video screen, which had now turned to total blackness, then to the bathroom located between the rooms of the two Rocca sisters. She could hear the water rushing. Her hands began to shake. She had gotten an idea. "I'll show you what the little sister can do…" she said, "…no one will put me down for that again!" The video she had watched had been months ago, but it was the only part of Madison Rocca's mind that Madison Grey knew. What a volatile thought it was.

She turned the handle of the bathroom door and walked in. Vida was humming "Fidelity" to the white walls, dripping with water, but stopped when she saw the body in front of the shower's misty door. "Madison?" she asked, "What are you doing in here?" Madison Grey had a knowing smirk cross her face, and snapped her fingers. A spark of blue magic appeared between her thumb and middle fingers and shot out.

The spark landed on the showerhead and turned the water freezing cold. Vida screamed in surprise and opened the door. "MADDIE!" she yelled. "WHAT WAS THAT FOR?" She grabbed for a towel. Her eyes looked to Madison Grey as she passed. There was that glare in the eyes. She thought it was determination at first, but now it had turned to something else entirely. "I'm investigating this tonight," Vida thought to herself. She wrapped the towel around herself and ran out.

Madison Grey laughed. "Take her down with those closest to her," thought the other Madison, "I can get the others once she's finished."

* * *

"A doppelganger!" Madison Rocca gasped in shock as she watched the events play out in the oasis, "Thank you, Clare!" She opened her Mystic Morpher and keyed in the digits that allowed her to contact Rootcore's Crystal Ball. She started screaming into the Morpher as soon as a link with the ball was reached.

"Clare!" she screamed, "CLARE!" She wondered if her voice was getting through. At the moment, in the giant tree, Clare was sleeping in her room and dreaming the night away. "If you see me…that's….NOT…ME!" She screamed until her throat was sore, trying to get a response from the apprentice on the other end of the dimension. No response came. The images in the oasis vanished. Madison could see her feet, standing in the water, sparkling blue. They felt…disconnected from the rest of her body.

Madison Rocca collapsed into the pool and became covered in the sparkling waters. Her entire body shone like sapphire. Her head stayed above the water, keeping her afloat. Blue sparks traveled back across her form, putting her mystic robes back on her body once more. She needed it more now than ever, because Clare had forgotten to mention one thing in her look-over of the bestiary – doppelgangers can steal more than the appearance of a person.

They can also steal their magic.

* * *

Night had fallen on the Rocca household, and Vida was still wide awake. When she was certain there was no light, from the computer or blue magic, coming from her sister's room, she decided to make her move. Vida held her wand above her head and chanted a single spell twice. "Galwit Minius! Galwit Minius!" She could feel her body shrinking in size.

"Fairy Wings!" A pair of the translucent pink fairy wings, smaller than normal, sprouted from Vida's back. She fluttered across the hallway, a faint glow in her color radiating from her body. The door to the other Madison's room was slightly ajar, giving her a chance to hover in. The bed appeared like a monstrous mountain from down there, but it wasn't going to stop her. Vida was going to figure out just what was up with Madison Grey. She'd invited this Grey girl into her own home, and expected to be respected, at the very least.

Vida landed on Madison Grey's stomach, supported by the blue bedsheets, and cast her wand at her not-sister's forehead. "Mysto Aura!" Madison's body twitched from the impact of the spell's spark, no smaller than a mosquito's stinger, and was immediately surrounded by a pitch-black cloud. Vida had to rely on her wand for light. She wasn't the wisest on magical auras, that was her sister's specialty, but she knew that a black one wasn't good.

Madison Grey, awoken by Vida's unknown presence on her, swatted her out the window in her sleep. Vida assumed her normal size, and transformed into her spandex on the way down with a call of "Galwit Mysto Ranger!" She had to head to Rootcore. Tomorrow was another day at work, and she had to get rid of the doppelganger before the Rockporium was swept away in a flash-flood by this unknown intruder. "Maddie…" she said into her Mystic Morpher, "…if you can hear me, I'm looking for you…the real you."

She hoped it had gotten through.


End file.
